Austen Lane last took the field for an NFL game around nine years ago. But the former fifth-round selection of the Jacksonville Jaguars is unquestionably back in the major leagues. Tuesday night, Lane, a heavyweight on the Dana White Contender Series, upset the previously unbeaten Richard Jacobi via first-round technical knockout to earn an Ultimate Fighting Championship contract. Lane played three seasons with the Jacksonville Jaguars and one for the Detroit Lions.
At the 4:34 mark of the initial stanza, the 34-year-old Lane halted Jacobi following a vicious string of right hands. Shortly later, White, the president of the UFC, declared Lane had been awarded a contract with the organization. You did it buddy, he remarked simply. Five fights are featured in each episode of the Dana White Contender Series, where budding mixed martial artists compete not only to win their battles but also to land a deal with the UFC from White.
